Today is the day Victor Reyes is holding a breakfast fundraiser for the Democratic Party of Illinois that House Speaker Mike Madigan chairs.

Reyes, the former Daley political operative turned lobbyist, will hold the event at Manny’s, the famed political lunch spot at Roosevelt Road and Jefferson Street. It’s $2,500 for sponsors and $500 for individuals, according to an invite, which also indicated the speaker himself will be on hand.

Reyes was chairman of the once-powerful Hispanic Democratic Organization, a Daley patronage army that was dismantled during a federal probe into city hiring. Federal prosecutors described Reyes as a co-schemer in the hiring fraud. He was not charged, although witnesses and court records have detailed his extensive influence in city hiring and in the Daley political organization.

More than $134 million has gone into Illinois campaign funds this year, according to the Illinois Sunshine update put out by the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. That includes more than $5.8 million reported so far this month.

Madigan has been raising a lot of money this year, but there’s no way he can keep up with the Rauner folks.

* And speaking of money, an SEIU local is not happy with incumbent Sen. Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago)…

The Southern laid out the flaws in Edgar’s “doable” approach very well on Sunday.

“Doable” helped get us to this point. And “doable” helped create the current budget and pension crunch we are dealing with. The “ramp” kept payments very low during his time in office and left the next generation to deal with the heaviest lifting.

My understanding is Eddie is setting up for a lobbying gig after he leaves office, which makes perfect sense (and he will be good at). The catch is part of setting up the post elective career is an ability to be LOVED by everyone…upsetting the most popular guy in the party doesn’t seem like the best approach.

That pretty well sums it up. People think that trying to get something that’s doable done is equivalent to the status quo. Really what they are saying is if you don’t do what Governor Rauner wants then you favor the status quo. It’s temper tantrums from children. There is nothing wrong with working on changes that can actually be accomplished instead of everyone constantly banging their head against walls asking for things that can’t be done. A lot of people have left reality land during this crisis.

Downstate- I wondered about that also. On FB Eddie’s been a Rauner water-carrier with a vengeance. What’s the point? Unless the gig he plans is IPI-ish. While he needs to go, Sauer’s short term on the County Board was unproductive, mainly because he’s a bit of a blow-hard himself, so, strap it down, here comes another one.

Um…it doesn’t take a Norman Einstein to figure out what Rep. Sullivan is doing. He’s either going to lobby or take an administration gig. Why burn bridges? He’s still young enough to work several more years and be at the top of his game. Guys like Mike Tryon and Dave Leitch are older and are probably ready for retirement. Ed Sullivan isn’t - and he’s got younger kids at home.

Has Rauner actually come out in support of Sauer Rich? Or have you just assumed because of Rauners appointment of Sauer to the Tollway Board? Last I heard Rauner was staying out of the 51st primary, but I may have missed and endorsement.

As long as I can remember, I have seen people running for office–whether Democrat or Republican–use platitudes like “the state needs structural change,” “I am for growing our economy,” and “we have to live within our means.” One party has abandoned these campaign platitudes for what is “doable” to concoct a budget deal which protects the status quo. In my mind, that is a failure.

I will readily admit that I am not enamored with every point in the “Turnaround Agenda”; I am also not enamored with voting for a tax increase. But I am willing to put my hesitations aside if both parties can come to an equitable solution to this crisis. In shared government, everyone gets a little and everyone gives a little to get a deal done. From my vantage point, I have seen little movement from the other side in giving up something that is required for a budget deal to get done in the spirit of shared government. How about we start with something and build from there? The current stream of Appropriation votes only serves to make one side look bad because they want a comprehensive package rather than disorganized fragments.

For those who have commented on my reasoning for supporting the Governor as it relates to my post-legislative career, my thoughts and voting record have not changed since I announced my retirement. I have never been satisfied with the status quo, and I think it’s time the General Assembly stops hiding behind the “doable” and starts providing real leadership for the State again.

The status quo, or current state of affairs, on Oct. 27, 2015, is a runaway, historic FY16 deficit, an abandonment of social service programs, taxes already paid for specific services being held hostage, taxes already paid for muni governments being held hostage, a fraudulent state-run lottery scam, a threatened shutdown of state universities, state contractors and vendors not being paid and resorting to layoffs and adding debt, and multiple credit downgrades with more to come.

Tne status quo, willfully created as part of a political strategy, is unacceptable. Taking all necessary measures to change it should be top priority.

I still live in hope that some moderate Republicans will turn on Rauner’s hostage strategy. Rauner and his money were there before he took office and will be there when he leaves office. It seems to me the surest road to re-election is to be on the side of the folks back home. If your constituents love you, it would take a LOT of money to change their minds. Too naive?